Pharmacoeconomics in China: Where We Are And Where Are We Going?

Austin, TX, USA & Beijing, China – Since the implementation of health care reforms in 2009, the Chinese government has taken steps to improve the accessibility and affordability of health care services in China.

Unlike some developed countries, submission of cost-effectiveness analyses for new pharmaceuticals is not required in China. Recognition of the importance of economic evaluations is growing, however, and the possible use of pharmacoeconomics for pricing new drugs was mentioned in the 2009 plan.

A team of researchers from the University of Texas at Austin and Peking University conducted a systematic literature review to evaluate the extent and quality of published pharmacoeconomics studies pertaining to China. This is an important first step toward the development of this discipline in China. The researchers found that the quality of published pharmacoeconomics studies in China was generally high, but the scope and number of studies were limited compared to developed countries. China is still at the early stage of integrating pharmacoeconomics into decision making.

“To continue to increase the accessibility and affordability of health care services in a country with large unmet medical needs, more pharmacoeconomics studies should be encouraged and results should be integrated into the decision-making processes.” says Shan Jiang, MS, first author, and PhD student at the College of Pharmacy at the University of Texas in Austin, Texas, USA.

Value in Health Regional Issues (ISSN 2212-1099) is a scientific journal that encourages and enhances the science of pharmacoeconomic/health economic and health outcomes research and its use in health care decisions. The journal is published up to three times a year with one issue focusing on the Asia region, one issue focusing on the Latin America region, and one issue focusing on the Central & Eastern Europe, Western Asia and Africa regions.

The International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) is a nonprofit, international, educational and scientific organization that strives to increase the efficiency, effectiveness, and fairness of health care resource use to improve health.